Iblesia

Commonwealth of Iblesia
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "Civility Requires Certainty."
Anthem: "I Vow To Thee My Country" [1]
Map of Iblesia.
Capital and largest city	Kingsport
Official languages	Iblesian
Ethnic groups	76% Human, 24% Other
Demonym(s)	Iblesian
Government	Constitutional Monarchy
• King	Alexander III
• Ruling House	House Canmore
• Prime Minister	Richard T. Owens
Independent (Sovereign)
• Act of Union	23th August 1606
• Bill of Rights	15th September 1606
• Royal Grant	8th January 1622
Area
•	377,973 km2 (145,936 sq mi)
Population
• 1731 estimate	12,500,000
• Density	26.5/km2 (68.6/sq mi)
GDP (nominal)	estimate
• Total	S17,762,500,000
• Per capita	S1,421
Currency	Shilling (S)
Date format	dd.mm.yyyy

The Commonwealth of Iblesia is a sovereign unitary state located off the eastern coast of Mulhollar. Iblesia is a constitutional monarchy which operates under a parliamentary system with a bicameral legislature which operates on a common law basis. The executive is led by a Prime Minister who derives their authority from the crown. The current monarch is King Alexander III of House Canmore who has reigned since 1224; and the current Prime Minister is Richard T. Owens who has been in office since 1698. The capital city of Iblesia is Kingsport which is also its largest city with a population of 2.4 million, slightly less than one quarter of the nation's total population of 10 million; the majority of the population are human, with significant dwarven and kanturan minorities.

Iblesia enjoys a largely temperate climate, though the northern isles fall within the subtropical zone. The Commonwealth occupies an extended archipelago off the eastern coast of Mulhollar and consists of approximately thirty seven islands (including islets) of which fifteen are inhabited; the remaining twenty two being either too small or too inhospitable for regular human habitation. The majority of the terrain is moderate with relatively low lying hills and mountains found towards the centre of the larger islands within the chain. Within the archipelago there are two principle islands which are substantially larger than the others; the larger of the two is called Brytha, with the smaller of the two, Gaela being found directly north, across a small channel. Much of the land area of Gaela and the outlying isles are covered in dense woodland and while Brytha also once boasted extensive woodland and great deal of the island has been deforested to make way for farming and industry.

The earliest known human inhabitants of the archipelago upon which Iblesia is located lived approximately eight thousand years ago. Prior to human migration to the isles they were largely uninhabited except for some small elven enclaves and notably the House of All Knowledge located on the lesser isle of Athena which is occupied by the Monitors. The earliest evidence of complex civilisation on the isles, with a written language and organised government dates back approximately two and a half thousand years when a series of petty kingdoms and tribal nations emerged; it was also during this time that the dwarven migration to the isles began. The isles would continue to be governed under a fractured system of tribal governance until 672 ME when the isle of Brytha was united under the rule of the Greater Vampire Alexander I of Canmore. By 1307 the isles were further united so that only two nations remained; the Kingdom of Brytha and the Kingdom of Gaela, both ruled by a vampiric monarch; a state of periodic war would continue for the next three centuries until the King of Gaela, the higher vampire Malcolm Bryce, was slain by Alexander III of Brytha, prompting the Act of Union.

Iblesia is a highly developed nation with a strong economy. The economic strength of the Commonwealth has been steadily building over the last decade with the beginning of industrialisation and urbanisation, factors which have led to a population boom and the rapid growth of urban centres. Traditionally the Iblesian economy relied upon the textile industry, primarily wool and flax products; the introduction of new production methods as well as the invention of more efficient weaving machinery have enabled the aforementioned industrialisation and have generated the capital necessary for further developments. The government's economic policy is one of wealth generation with considerable subsidies and investment available for industrialists and capitalists.

Etymology & Terminology

The Commonwealth of Iblesia takes its name from that of the ancient protector goddess Iblese who was the patron deity of the isles which now make up the nation. Originally the term Iblesia was used to refer only to the archipelago as a whole, since multiple petty kingdoms and tribal fiefs controlled the archipelago prior to the formation of the Commonwealth. The name Iblesia directly translates to "Isles of Iblese". Iblesia is referred to as a Commonwealth because of its status as a Constitutional Monarchy; according to the Bill of Rights the government "...operates on behalf of the crown for the common good of the people of Iblesia."

History

The archipelago upon which modern day Iblesia is located has been inhabited in some form for the last ten thousand years. The only natives to the archipelago appear to be the Monitors who have lived upon a single island within a structure known as the House of All Knowledge; however the Monitors have never spread their civilisation beyond the confines of this island and little is known about them even now. The earliest inhabitants to settle the isle were nomadic elves belonging to the Cheruskan culture, and these elves established numerous small coastal settlements which relied upon fishing and small scale agriculture; these early elven settlers left behind various monuments showing evidence of a sophisticated and well developed culture unique to the archipelago. The Cheruskan culture started its decline approximately eight thousand years ago with a mass migration of humans from the continent of Mulhollar to the west. The migrant humans came in two waves; the first belonging to the Brythyan culture and the second to the Gaelyan cultures. Although the human settlement of Iblesia was not violent in nature the Cheruskan elves were ultimately outnumbered and through centuries of intermarriage with the human population largely ceased to be. The large kanturian minority in Iblesia is a legacy of the Cheruskan extinction, with the Kantur being descended from the ancient Cheruskans.

Iblesia was unified in 1606 with the Act of Union after the death in ritual combat of the Gaelan king, the Higher Vampire known as Malcolm Bryce, by the Brythan king Alexander Canmore. Prior to this the archipelago was controlled by a number of petty kingdoms with most only inhabiting a single island; however as society and technology advanced two major powers emerged centred around the two human cultures which had settled the isles. By 1307 the Kingdom of Gaela had successfully unified the Gaelyan culture in the northern isles while the Kingdom of Brytha had united the more numerous Brythyan culture in the southern isles. The two nations remained rivals and a state of continuous animosity between the two countries existed until 1544 when the Treaty of Knitsport was signed bringing an end to the hostilities. Tensions began to build once more in 1604 with the Brythan decision to rearm and rebuild its naval power; the Gaelyan king, Malcolm Bryce interpreted this as a preparation for war and issued a personal challenge to his rival, Alexander Canmore, in order to settle the matter of rule of the isles once and for all.

Following the unification of the isles a series of incremental reforms to the government took place. Under increasing pressure from various early capitalists and industrialist Alexander III steadily increased the authority of Parliament and of the Prime Minister, granting the latter the use of the Royal Prerogative, while increasing the number of peers in the House of Lords. Major changes to the House of Commons came in 1680 when suffrage was extended to all persons who owner property (land or a house) or who had served at least eight years in the military; in response to the vastly increased size of the electorate (it had more than tripled in size) new electoral boroughs were established with some of the larger existing boroughs being separated. The 1680 electoral reform increased the size of the Commons to 523 seats with each MP representing approximately 19,000 people. 1684 saw the official abolition of slavery, serfdom, and indentured servitude throughout Iblesia; although in practice serfdom had ended in the 16th century it had remained a legal fact which allowed the continuance of serfdom in some of the smaller isles and the manipulation of the newly democratised system of government. Under the new laws abolishing serfdom and indentured servitude the bulk of the common folk who did not meet the criteria to vote became cives sine suffragio or Citizens Without the Vote.

The current government under Prime Minister Richard T. Owens came to power in 1698 following the general election of that year. Owens and his party campaigned on a platform of national development and expansion with increased spending on education, business investments, and colonial ventures. The Liberal Party succeeded in taking the place of the Conservatives in power after a series of political scandals throughout the early 1690s which had severely weakened the party and its support base, exposing systemic corruption and embezzlement of government funds. Since taking power the Liberal Party has engaged in establishing a Ministry for Colonial Affairs with the goal of colonising parts of eastern Mulhollar. Other projects include the construction of an extensive network of canals and paved roads linking major urban centres to the resources located further inland.

First East Mulhollar Company Chartered Colonisation

On 9th Enneada 1711 the first overseas colony belonging to Iblesia was established in New Kingsport on the isle of Nova Brytha by the East Mulhollar Company (E.M.C.) which had been granted the charter to do so a month prior in Octoeada 1711. The company itself had been building up capital through a combination of international sea trade and through trading with the indigenous populations of eastern Mulhollar since 1684 and already had a large fleet of ships and considerable resources with which to carry out a colonial charter; with the charter grant however came additional investment and resources that were given by the government of Iblesia under Richard T. Owens, along with permission for the E.M.C. to begin recruiting and transporting colonists and pioneers across the Iblesian sea. The E.M.C. had been anticipating the grant for some time and had already dispatched ships on 29th Octeada 1711 with colonists, troops, and resources in order to establish an initial colony. The ships arrived on 9th Enneada 1711 and of the sixteen sent twelve were deconstructed for building materials, their cannon being redeployed to defend the fledgling settlement which was dubbed New Kingsport.

Further fleets had also been dispatched by the E.M.C. to other islands further south located in the Alexander Archipelago, and to the eastern Mulhollari coast on the Julian Peninsula, however these did not arrive until the 11th Enneada 1711, two days after the establishment of New Kingsport. As had been the case with the initial colonisation on Nova Brytha the majority of the ships sent were dismantled for building materials allowing for the rapid construction of fortified settlements. These fleets had successfully made landfall and established the towns of Alexanderhavn, Julianashavn, Owensburg, and New Brenwyth on 11th Enneada 1711, while two further fleets were delayed for five days and would arrive on 17th Enneada 1711 to establish Isobelville, Andrewstown, and Jamestown in a similar fashion. Under the E.M.C. plan for the establishment and organisation of the new colonies the colonial efforts were divided into three areas of control, referred to officially as Colonial Districts, each ruled by its own Governor. These colonial districts were New Iblesia, centred in Kingsport; Alexandria, centred in Alexanderhavn; and Juliana, centred in Julianashaven.

In the early stages of the colonisation effort the main focus was on establishing sustainable trading and supply ports where the indigenous people of eastern Mulhollar could bring goods such as furs, pelts, tobacco, and sugarcane for trade with the settlers. Because the government was subsidising the colonisation effort the E.M.C. was able to focus upon planting crops and raising livestock meant to feed the population rather than seeking to establish cash crops; for the interim the colonial profits would be slim and largely drawn from trade with the natives. However as the settlements expanded in size and complexity the demand for additional territory and resources grew and as these demands were met it enabled the establishment of sugar, tobacco, and cotton plantations; but in meeting the demands of the growing colonies more and more settlers found themselves well outside the defensive walls of the original settlements. Additionally the steady encroachment of the E.M.C. into native lands was creating increased tensions between settlers and the native populations; by 1720 tensions had reached such a point that trade with the native populace had all but died out. A series of minor skirmishes between E.M.C. troops and native warriors in 1722 finally brought an end to any suggestion that the colonies and the native populations could co-exist peacefully.

By 1725 the new colonies of Iblesia were well established and turning a substantial profit. The end of trade with the native inhabitants had initially damaged the E.M.C.'s profits, however as the plantations they had established grew in size and started to outproduce any effort by the natives the demands for sugar, tobacco, and cotton were now being reliably met by the colonists themselves. Successive colonial governors saw no reason to pursue trade or peace with the native populations and in 1726, following a brutal raid by members of the Tuhradib native orc tribe on the Alexandria town of Stocksbride, the governor formally declared was upon the native tribes. Both of the other Colonial Districts were located on islands of their own which had been uninhabited, or which had already integrated the small native populations present and in response to the Alexandrian governor, Sir Lucas Nash's declaration of war they were able to send their own troops to help.

The end of the twenty year colonial charter loomed and in 1731 the E.M.C.; according to the terms by which the E.M.C. had been granted their charter they were required to pay back the investments, loans, subsidies, and interest given by the government by this time. Despite the ongoing Alexandrian Frontier War and the costs and losses incurred by prosecuting it the E.M.C. had been able to turn a profit; however it was not sufficient to fully cover the government investments, and so on 24th Hendeceada 1731, control of the three colonies was officially handed over to the Iblesian government. In practical terms this changed little for the colonists and settlers in the Three Colonies; the E.M.C. had operated according to Iblesian law, and the homeland was not so far distant that legal matters requiring a higher court could not be easily dealt with. On 30th Hendeceada 1731 the Iblesian parliament voted to enfranchise the colonies, granting the right to vote to colonial citizens.

The termination of the First Charter of Colonisation with the government taking control of the Three Colonies actually proved beneficial for the E.M.C. financially; they were no longer required to fund the ongoing Alexandrian Frontier War, and they still owned many of the private interests in the colonies. Additionally although they had failed to pay back the government in full, due to the interest owed, the company had turned a profit for its private shareholders and investors and so had the capital and influence to pursue a Second Charter of colonisation. In Monoeada 1732 the E.M.C. formally lobbied parliament for a second grant of colonisation so as to begin the larger scale colonisation of the Mulhollar mainland.

Alexandrian Frontier War

Beginning in Trieada 1726 with the formal declaration of war on the native tribes of the region east of the Alexandrian Colonial District by Governor Lucas Nash, the Alexandrian Frontier War was a broad but rather nebulous conflict fought until 1733 with the Tuhradib tribal chieftain Uruk Mog-Udaar's surrender at Black Pine Stand after a prolonged siege of the tribal settlement there. The official casus belli' was to exact reparations for the damages caused and losses suffered by a series of native raids and skirmishes with E.M.C. troops in 1722 and to avenge the massacre at Stocksbride in which fifty three Iblesian colonists were murdered by orc warriors of the Tuhradib tribe. However the declaration of war was against all of the nearby tribes east of the Alexandrian frontier, rather than just those responsible, and because these tribes were not all united or even of the same culture any formal diplomatic communications with them were severely hindered; not only that but many innocent tribes, which had aided or traded with the E.M.C. in the past, were now being attacked.

The early stage of the Frontier War was seen as a major success. E.M.C. troops, supported by local militia forces, were able to push miles into tribal territory. This had resulted in the destruction of several tribal camps and villages, but only one major battle was fought prior to 1728, at Uhlahataar, a fortified orc encampment. The remainder of the first year and a half of war was spent patrolling vast tracts of wilderness, raiding small and largely defenceless villages, and fighting minor skirmishes with native warriors. The battle at Uhlahataar was the first decisive battle of the war; up to this point most of the engagements had been fought as ambushes, or had otherwise been too small scale for any kind of ordered battle, and although Iblesian tactics relied on organised formations and volley fire the native warriors, who were utterly unprepared and unfamiliar with gunpowder technology and metal weaponry, had generally been soundly defeated. At Uhlahataar a large E.M.C. force had besieged an orc encampment, it was the E.M.C.'s first chance at a proper conventional battle, and although the native forces defending the encampment were by now adapting to Iblesian technology and tactics they were unprepared for a siege of the kind prosecuted against them.

The E.M.C. strategy, put in place by Colonel Matthew Dawes, was to encircle the encampment, which was protected by earthworks and a palisade wall, and to bombard it with cannon and mortar fire. A fairly standard tactic by Iblesian conventions, but one that the defenders could not have anticipated as they had no experience facing artillery and were used to siege scenarios involving a drawn out battle of attrition. Within hours of the first bombardment it is estimated that sixty percent of the defending force were killed or wounded. The cannon, firing solid shot directly into the palisades turned the wooden fortifications into fragmentation bombs with the splinters of timber inflicting terrible wounds. On the second day, having bombarded Uhlahataar until his ammunition ran out, Colonel Dawes ordered the assault. E.M.C. casualties were light, the remaining defenders quickly surrendered handing the E.M.C. victory.

In an effort to end the war early Colonel Dawes released the prisoners taken at Uhlahataar on the proviso that they communicate a peace offer to their leaders. Among those released was the son of the Chieftain of Uhlahataar, Uruk Mog-Udaar, who was now himself Chieftain of his battered tribe. Although he agreed to communicate the peace offer he urged his fellow tribal chieftains to reject it. Uruk Mog-Udaar proved to be a shrewd negotiator and tactician who had spotted exploitable weaknesses in the technology and tactics employed by the E.M.C. forces and with a united force of warriors he was able to lead a warband on a highly successful guerrilla campaign against the E.M.C. Uruk Mog-Udaar understood the strength of the Iblesian artillery and ended the fruitless practice of trying to raid fortified positions, instead he focused on small skirmishes and ambushes where the slow firing muskets of the E.M.C.'s troops were at a disadvantage to the rapid firing of the orc bows. This strategy of slowly bleeding the E.M.C. was intended to force them to sue for peace at more favourable terms; Uruk Mog-Udaar wanted a promise of no further expansion into tribal lands but the E.M.C. stubbornly refused.

In 1731 the E.M.C. handed over colonial authority to the Iblesian government. Dawes was replaced with Major-General Sir Andrew A. Fitch. Fitch had studied the battle reports provided, and the tactics employed by both Dawes and Mog-Udaar and immediately began a series of changes. With ruthless efficiency the Iblesian military began to build roads into the frontier territories being fought over and established a network of forts and outposts which were practically unassailable by the native tribes with the technology they had available. Prisoners captured in attacks of native camps and villages were no longer released, instead they were relocated into camps intended to be integration centres so that the orcs could be turned into productive citizens; however endemic mismanagement of the camps would inadvertently lead to the spread of disease and the perpetration of severe abuses by camp guards. Major-General Fitch was undeterred and unconcerned by the reports from the camps however and continued on, pressing his forces further east into the Mulhollari frontier, sending prisoners back east to camps, until the tribes were so depleted that they were unable to even feed themselves.

Major-General Fitch finally accepted the surrender of Mog-Udaar in 1733. The Iblesian government agreed to release the orc population from the camps, but forced citizenship upon them, forcing them to become farmers, labourers, and runners for the colonial authorities in exchange for an end to hostilities and the formal acceptance of the tribal religions and traditions. Mog-Udaar had little choice but to accept; his people were starving or dying from disease in camps; peace promised their release and food. Major-General Fitch was decorated for his successes and placed in charge of the integration efforts in 1734. The Iblesian government hoped to rapidly boost the population and productivity of the colonies by integrating the orc natives into Iblesian society.

Geography

The majority of the Commonwealth of Iblesia lies within the northern temperate zone and consists of thirty seven islands and islets of which fifteen are inhabited. The southernmost part of the island chain falls within the northern subtropical zone. The temperate isles within Iblesia have a generally wet and cool climate with rainfall and fog being consistent throughout the year. The two largest islands, Brytha and Gaela, feature low lying mountains and hills towards the centre which steadily gives way to dense woodland. The coastal areas typically consist of rolling countryside and rocky moorland which provide ideal ground for agriculture and pastoral farming. The smaller islands within the archipelago are generally rocky and densely wooded with granite cliffs featuring limited bays and havens.

Brytha is the largest island within the Iblesian archipelago and is also the mildest in terms of terrain and climate. The coastal regions feature low lying grasslands and large areas of deciduous woodland which give way to densely wooded hills and uplands further inland. The majority of the island's fresh water supply is source from rivers which start as springs in these uplands. Lakes of varying size are not uncommon, many fed by the consistent annual rainfall which is a defining feature in the island's climate. Toward the centre of Brytha can be found a line of low lying mountains. The majority of the island's largest urban centres, including the capital Kingsport, are located along the coast and many take advantage of river estuaries, or in the case of the capital, broad natural harbours. Kingsport is also the largest city in the Commonwealth with a population of over 2 million.

Gaela is the second largest island and lies directly north of Brytha across a narrow sea channel. Gaela's climate is cooler and wetter than that of Brytha, in part due to its position further north, but also due to its elevation. Although Gaela features low lying coastal fens and moorland inland this terrain rapidly gives way to sharp inclines, rocky hills and crags, and mountainous interior regions. The island's landscape is defined by a series of glens and lochs which rest in the uplands within the mountainous interior. The average elevation in Gaela is significantly higher above sea level than Brytha. The largest city on the island in Brenwyth with a population of approximately 720,000.